Process of producing matrices.



similar nature, by the art unirnnsnrus WILLIAM rLWnLsH, or ooLLiNesiif'oon To CHARLTON DELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA."

,Ik ,new n. ROYAL Annone-rhino JERSEY., Assioronvor oriarninn freni-Mns F,.-GoUNLnY, or Ppi-HLA PRo'cE'ss Aor Pnonnoinenii/iernions.

To alt whom it may conc'errf lSe it known that I, WILLIAM H. WELSH, 'acitizen of the United States, anda resident of Collingswood, Caindencounty, Neu/iden. sey` have lnventedcertain `Processes ,of Pro-4 olucingI lilatrices, of which the followingis a specification. .y My invention relates to the productionv oiniatrices and the subsequent,electrotypes made therefrom f'or 'use in` there I reduction of half-tones, zinc etcliingsand tlie like, for books, magazines, andv other matter. cimas consists of an improved process ofproducing su cli matrices,

My invention may' which:

half-tone, zinc .onthe platen of a press`and illustrating` the 'showing lfurthersteps in t'liepiocess, vandv Fig. fis a sectionalv1eW,'ill'ustratiiigtheini` an inch or slightly A tone, zinc etching or the like, is ot large size,

st step in'` the process fiiningtlie subject f. myinvention; Fig. 2', isasniiilarsectional 1 View, si'iowing'tlie next step in ltheprocess;`

Figs. 3 and 4, aresiniilar seetioiialuviews,

p ression taken from tiie'lialfftone, zinc etching orthe like, yembedded in a bottv ofl )tax or other suitable plastic material, which inipression is to be subsequently,treatedin the ordinary manner of iiialingan elcctrotype..

The ordinary'niethod of iiialiing electrotypes from half-tones, zinc etcliings and the like, is to make a Wax impression, blacklead the same, oxidize such blaclelead, place the oxidized impression in the electroplating bath, and when asulliCieHt quantity of nieta-l has been deposited thereon, to strip such shell from tlie Wax impression, back it ivitli metal and then nisli the saine in the usual manner. Experience has proven, however, that it is practically impossible to malte satisfactory impressions and 'subsequent electrotypes with the aid of Wax, from half-tones, zinc etchiiigs and the like, and for this reason it has been recentl;T` proposed to prepare metal impressions of such half-tones, which are subsequently and then electroplate'd. This latter practice is to employ' a sheet oflead or other suitable metal of a thickness approximately 3/64- of greater, and the half- Speci'oaton of Letters Patent.

of printing, andzit.:

. ,bebs ,described by: n reference. to the accompanying 1 drawings', in

treated in the usual manner i the metai sheet step by step so aste 'prevent' dai'iiageto the' platen or otherl part. of the press,y

1907,' serial N0-.scarsa i h 'lead,-is einployed to receive the half-tone impression and be subsequently embedded directly inthe Wax' and is niost satisf'ac'tory` fo" g scribed, except-'that afterreiiic valfigoi diiiiculty 'experienced in rei'i'ioyi` itzbeing necessary to heat' t'he lead ,tota `can .be strippedffron'i the same.

The object of my obviate vthis difficulty sheet. oi metal foil, and .picking up, by plastic or similar material, or toil Which-has received theahalitone or 'zino etcliin' i, preserve its surface-in the 'desired plane a condition that would be destroyed if thev sheet of foil Were unsupported. y The advantages of a metal in'ipressio'ii of a'lialftone or zinc etching are fully pointed out in my application before referred to, and it is not thought necessary to describe them herein.

`in carrying out vthe method or process forming the subject of niy invention, l pro ceed as follows: l represents a lialiltone or zinc etching, which is shown reiiioyed from l its block and lying upon the lower platen 2 ol l a suitable hydraulic press, the upper, movi ableA platen I3 of which serves as the iiicdiuiii for pressing the sheet of metal foil into the indentation ci vthe lialt`-toiie or zinc etching'. Upon such halt-tone or ziu'c etching, i place a thin sheet of metal foil` prci'ciriiig to use lead foil, from (5/1000 to lB/iUUO oll an inch in thickness, which sheet ot'- l'oil indicated at i, and. by preference just covers the luill'- tone or Zinc etching. A layer 5, olI relatively soit or yielding material, several sheets of avedescribedA andclaiineda ineth'od'orprocess of making'l combined4 type 'and @half-tone' impressions from whichsubsequnt electrotypes .are pro#l duced, and in which a niet'al'plate, preferably v Y greateror less degreebefore the copper plate., i

' present ,inyeii'tion iisf'tOf.- byi'the 'use of a thin g Patented Dee'. 17, lOZ i Appl-immane@ Mayzo, 1907 serai naief/e637. i

' in ya 'companion' application, filed Admit-25,1 A'

in the Wart, thetypennpression being iliade y y surrounding. or dis.. posed adjacent the 'half-tone, Thisfnietliod .y

r"`the' purpose :de-m70 he#L elefctroplating bath, there isinore or ,lessi ng the lead;I g impression troni the deposited` coppern shell Y;

a suitablefsupporting bodylof ,l 'e

of the lmetal sheet the' presion pa er for instance, is placed on' top of this s et of metal foil, and then pressure is applied to 'the ylayerslso prepared. No

s cific pressure is employed except that it s ould be suicient to cause the necessary displacement of the 'metal foil to form inthe same the lines, indentations and other surdrawn from the press, andk a body of plastic faces of the half-tone or zinc etchin The half-tone or zinc etching with the oi-l,im pressioncovering the same is then Withmaterial mounted upon a suitable carrier, referably a Wax plate of the usual character or securing an ordinary type impression and indicated at 6, is put over thesame. The impression and the superposed -Wax or plastic body are then returned tol the press' and subjected tosuicien't pressure to frce Ithe body of Wax or plastic material towards the face of the lower platen of the press;

thereby embedding the foil covered half-tone or zinc etching in saidbody of Wax or plastic v material and efiectingfsuch a 'bond between said plastic body or Wax andthe foil .as to firmly secure the latter .thereto for all purposes in the subse uent steps of producing an electrotype. en the body of plastic material or Wax is removed from the press,- the half-tone or zinc etching may be readily lifted-from theimpressed sheet of metal foil,

leaving the latter firmly embedded in thelastic body or Wax, and such impression is lack-leaded in the usual manner and placed ink the electroplating bath. *A number of foil impressions may be embedded in and picked up by a single plate of Wax or plastic material if desired, and Whentransferred to .the'electroplating bath, a continuous shell 4of any lnumber of impressions will be produced. l a When'the copper coating or deposit .has been effected in the electroplating bath, the foil impression may be readily stripped from the copper shell withotrrurther Aattention or ftreatment, andthe latter is then backed and finished in the usual'manner.

While I speak of employing metal foil, (lead foil for example), to secure the impresv-Sion from the half-tone, zinc etching,- and the like, and have used such expression in th claims, it Will be understood that it is a purely relative term and that 'it includes any relatively thin sheet of metal capable of performing the function desired in the process forming the subject of my invention as described herein. s

I claim: l

l. The process of forming matrices for'the production of electrotypes from half-tones,

zinc etchings and the like, which consists in making a metal foil impression of the hal-f- Vtone, zinc etching, etc., placing a bodyof plastic `material over the foil impression to serve as a carrier therefor, andl applying'- pressure to said plastic body whereby the impiessedfoil becomes firmly embedded in l and attached thereto and may be stripped In testimony whereof, l have signed mv name to this specification, in the presence of tWo subscribing Witnesses.

WILLIAM' H. WELSH' lWitne'sses MURRAY C. BOYER,

Jos. H. KLEIN. 

